The last stop on our OR/WA trip was in Bend, OR where we would meet up with my wife’s sister and brother in law, and our nephew and his wife.
On the way, we had dinner with my cousin in Portland. Love you, Rachelle!
We love Bend for the great outdoor activities, and we were looking forward to some great kayaking, hiking and biking while there. See previous posts here and here.
We had an awesome trip up to this point, traveling up the coast of CA and OR, and spending time with family in Bothell, WA.
Our first day we enjoyed catching up with family. They are all from WA but we decided to meet up here in Bend, OR for some family time and recreation.
Them’s the Breaks
The first morning I got up early to complete a bike ride. I had a great 15 mile route planned through town which I had taken several times on our previous visits.
Things were going great until just before my planned stop at Back Porch Coffee. The city was constructing a round-a-bout and the road on my route was closed, but I noticed another road I could take. As I was going down a hill I slowed down while signaling with my right hand. Unfortunately, I hit a bump and reflexively hit the brake much too hard! The next thing I knew I was flying like Superman over the handlebars!
I landed in the intersection and immediately realized my arm was broken. It was really painful and looked deformed. I had to sit down as waves of pain rolled over me. A guy in a Jeep asked if I could use a ride and I took him up on it. I really appreciated this Good Samaritan. He was in town to see his elderly parents and I wished him well as he dropped me off at the motorhome.
Deb took me to the urgent care where I got the first of 4 casts/splints on my road to recovery.
At this point, my arm is cast free and I have started physical therapy. It will be a slow road to full recovery, but it should happen.
My accident was completely preventable. Since I was riding a bike in unfamiliar territory, I should have slowed down more, especially when I encountered unexpected road construction. I should also have never have taken my hand off the rear brake when rolling downhill and approaching the construction. The bottom line is don’t let this happen to you!
The Smoke
The next issue we encountered was heavy smoke from the terrible forest fires in south eastern Oregon. The AQI (Air Quality Index) was into the 200’s and made any outdoor activity unhealthy.
This put a big crimp in our plans for kayaking and hiking. Well, for the rest of the group anyway, since I was already out of commission.
We spent more time around the campground talking and eating.
The Virus
That brings up to the coup de grâce. Our nephew and niece started feeling ill the day after they arrived.
Because of that we stopped hanging out inside, just to be safe, and they ended up leaving early. This was in July before everyone found out how contagious the new variant was. Turns out they did have THE virus. Their symptoms were mild and they have since recovered.
The next day, my Brother-in-Law started feeling bad, even though he was vaccinated, so we all decided to cut the vacation short and head home. He and his wife ended up testing positive but both are now recovered. Deb and I both tested negative.
The drive home was uneventful. I had no trouble driving, but if I wasn’t able to drive, we have insurance that would have got us all home safely.
We were glad to get home but also sad because we had to cancel some future plans due to my broken wrist — a non-RV trip to Disneyland and also a big RV trip we planned across the country. At the same time, things could have been much worse. We feel blessed to be able to travel like we do all over God’s creation, and also to have a home to go back to when we can’t.
Because of this, and what will be two months of no RV travel, we are so looking forward to next month for our first RV trip since the accident, with approval from my doctor, of course!
Al & Deb
MobileMosers.com 
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